The Karnataka legislative assembly witnessed acrimonious scenes on Friday when Congress opposition leader Siddaramaiah demanded the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) enquiry into the mining scam, estimated to be of the order of several thousand crores, in the state. Speaker K G Bopaiah adjourned the house when the opposition members created a ruckus and did not allow the speaker to issue a ruling on a point of order raised by Congress member T B Jayachandra.
With opposition Congress and JD(S) members as well as the BJP members in the treasury benches being involved in trading charges against each other, bedlam and furore marked the debate on the controversy. The house witnessed a heated exchange of words between MLAs loyal to Bellary ministers and the opposition after the House was adjourned amidst discussion on illegal mining in the state.
Demanding that tourism and infrastructure development minister G Janaradhana Reddy should not be given an opportunity to discuss the issue after the chief minister had already given his reply to the debate on the illegal mining and the resignation (and the subsequent withdrawal) of the Lok Ayukta, the opposition Congress trooped into the well of the House and staged a dharna.
Speaker K G Bopaiah then adjourned the House to meet on Monday.
Thereafter, some Congress members, particularly Dinesh Gundu Rao,and a few MLAs like Sureshbabu and Somashekhara Reddy as also Janardhana Reddy, all from mineral-rich Bellary district, were seen engaged in a heated exchange. A few MLAs Intervened to prevent the situation from getting ugly.
Siddaramaiah was at his sarcastic best while lambasting the Yeddyurappa government over the export of 7.1 million tonnes of iron ore illegally from the state in 2009-10.
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Stating that Belekeri port near Karwar accounted for around 3.5 million tonnes of illegal exports of iron ore, he demanded the chief minister to give an answer on how did this happen? He asked the chief minister to accept the demand for a CBI probe.
Though the Lok Ayukta submitted its report on rampant irregularities in the mining sector over one and half years ago, the government chose not to act on it.
“The chief minister, who also holds the portfolios of forest as well as mines and geology, has no moral right to continue in office and should resign,” Siddaramaiah demanded.
In his reply chief minister B S Yeddyurappa said, “It was previous governments that encouraged the loot of the iron ore.”
He said his government had been opposing the export of ore and brought out a revised mining policy giving thrust on value addition. The data related to export of iron ore over the last seven years show that illegally exported iron ore amounts to over legal exports, he said adding, 7.12 million tonnes of iron ore was exported illegally compared to legal exports of 6 million tonnes during 2009-10.
The discussion raised a lot of heat and sparks flew, with speaker K G Bopaiah expunging certain remarks.
Siddaramaiah, speaking to reporters later, termed these ruling MLAs’ behaviour as one that amounted to “criminal intimidation” and lodged a complaint with the Speaker for what he described as “goondaism” and “threatening”.